Cognac Pellisson 1907

Leonetto Cappiello made this promotional poster for Cognac Pellisson and it's a trip! It looks like it was made with big flat planes of color using gouache or maybe tempera. The kid reminds me of the circus, like Cappiello was thinking about the exaggerated gestures of performers. I wonder if he knew Toulouse-Lautrec and saw his posters of dancers at the Moulin Rouge? And that barrel—heavy!—the kid's little arms must be burning. What was Cappiello thinking when he made this? It's so playful, even though the weight of the brand is literally on the kid's shoulders. Making a painting is like that too. You keep adding weight to it. More colors, more forms, more ideas, until it becomes an impossible balancing act, a joyful struggle between you and the artwork. We keep each other afloat.